On day two of the draft the Oilers went after big forwards with skill, and then took a few 20-year-olds late in the draft. I knew the Oilers really liked Mitch Moroz, and I think it is fair to say they grabbed him earlier than people expected. He would have been snatched up before their 3rd round pick. Winnipeg, Carolina, Philly and Anaheim liked him, so the Oilers rolled the dice and drafted the rugged forward 32nd overall.

Was it a risk? Sure, but was is it an awful one, I don't think so. The Oilers have enough legitimate skill, but they have few players with a combination of size and skill. If you honestly think they would be able to acquire forwards who can play in their top-six or top-nine that are rugged, tough and skilled then you likely think being a GM in NHL 2012 is the same as being one in the NHL.

You need to draft those players and then ensure you do a good job developing them.

It is virtually impossible to predict which of the 181 day-two picks will pan out, but I asked Stu MacGregor his thoughts on the six the Oilers took.

JG: Explain the thought process of taking Moroz at 32?

SM: You always have to step up if there was a player you like. We liked him, we followed him and his developmental curve is on the way up. He provides some toughness, but not just toughness, he's a good hockey player. He takes the puck to the net real hard and he shows a little bit of touch around the net. He's only played one year of junior and I think he's got an opportunity, with continuous development and drive, to be a good player for us.

It looks like the mandate was to get bigger and not necessarily draft best player available, why?

SM: We have to get a little bigger, and that is what we are trying to do. We wanted to add some size to our forwards, so that you can be strong in front of the net. The game seems to be played within that ten foot area and we have lots of skill, so let's surround them with some guys that are going to be able to compete and help them get the puck and open up space for them.

JG: Jujhar Khaira (63rd overall) just had his rights traded to Everett in the WHL. He mentioned he's committed to Michigan Tech but is going to talk to the Oilers about what is best for him. What do you think would be best for his development?

SM: I don't think it is going to matter, because he's going to need a couple years (to develop) no matter what. I don't think he's even grown into his body yet so he'll continue to develop physically. I'm always of the belief that if you've chosen a path, take that path. Don't waver back and forth unless that path you've tried isn't working. We'll have some conversation with him, but I just believe you should continue in the phase that you are looking at, because that is where your best interests are and that's what you believe in. I would suggest continue what you are doing.

Zharkov (91st overall) came across as a very confident and charasmatic guy. Did you sense that and what do you like about him?

SM: Those Russians are outgoing guys (laughs). Here's another young man who has come over here and extended himself. He was was in Tri City in the USHL the previous year, and in Belleville this year. I really think it is a credit to these young guys to be able come over here and just plant yourself in North America, cause you want to play here. They've shown they want to play here, and to me that is a great checkmark beside their name.

He told us in our interview that he loves playing in Canada and I want to play where it is important. I like guys that have that passion.

He said he wants to be as good or better than Yakupov, what do you think about that?

SM: Well it's good to have that confidence. I'm not sure why he slid (was ranked 2nd rounder), we've liked him from the start. He did get hurt at the beginning of the year, I believe it was his collarbone, so he sat out some time, but his last part of the year was outstanding, and he was very good at the under-18 World Championships.

JG: What do you like about Laleggia (123rd overall)?

SM: He's not a big guy, but he skates well, moves the puck intelligently, smart guy, quick pass guy, gets the puck up the ice and he has really good hockey sense.

JG: McCarron (153rd overall)?

SM: He's a big body, had good hands. He's a right winger, very strong on the puck, takes it to the net, has a good shot and he's strong around the net. A couple years in college and hopefully we can look forward to him making a challenge with our team.

JG: Gustafsson (93rd overall)?

SM: Gustafsson is an offensive, skilled D-man who played with Djurgardens in the Swedish Elite league. He's a solid puck mover that hopefully we can fit in with the rest of our group to give us more puck movers with some size.

WHERE DID THEY COME FROM?

There were 211 draft picks this year, and here's a breakdown of the draft selections by birthplace:

FINAL THOUGHTS..

I would have liked the Oilers to draft Alex Galchenyuk first, but it is hard to critique taking Yakupov. He's a dynamic player and he'll likely jump right into the NHL next year.

The rest of the picks were interesting.

If Moroz continues to develop he could be fill a huge void on this team, but we likely won't see him for at least three years. I like that they addressed a need, even though he went earlier than expected.

The Red Line Report had Khaira as their top sleeper pick of the draft. It will be years before we see him in the NHL, but sometimes a sleeper pick pans out.

I love skill, so I like the Zharkov pick. The kid was quite funny at his post-draft presser, and he has lots of confidence. The Oilers need some big guys with skill, so he fits that bill. It will be interesting to watch his progress in Belleville next year.

Gustafsson, Laleggia and McCarron are all long shots of course, but for their sake I hope being drafted gives them even more incentive to work hard and fulfill their dream.

Getting drafted is a huge honour and nice reward for years of hard work, but if any of these day-two picks want to become regulars in the NHL they will have to work even harder the next few years.

Interesting how rankings change and just a guideline...Earlier this year Zharkov was ranked 19th by Central Scouting. Drafting and rankings are a crap shoot at times.

One of Canada's most versatile sports personalities. Jason hosts The Jason Gregor Show, weekdays from 2 to 6 p.m., on TSN 1260, and he writes a column every Monday in the Edmonton Journal. You can follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/JasonGregor

[Quote]: The Oilers gameplan yesterday was to have the first and second selections in the 2012 NHL entry draft. The top 2 picks would have allowed them to do away with ever having to deal with the KHL hammer everytime Yakupov is up for renewal.

Many feel the Oilers wanted to select Ryan Murray first overall, and then follow up by selecting Alex Galchenyuk in that second spot. Getting two assets of that calibre without the risk of a possible future overseas flight would be ideal.

Edmonton turns up the heat on Howson Friday morning by using their media contacts to leak Ryan Murray is the unanimous choice for the Oilers first overall selection. Lowe had a substancial offer to Howson which they felt Scott would go for with Murray perceived to be off the board. Howson doesn't cooperate and Edmonton is left to take only one of the two selections they were hoping for. Only one selection meant Yakupov. If they went only with Murray alone (the Oilers actual concensus No.1 pick in their circle of trust) in that 1 spot they may have needed to declare Marshall Law in Edmonton. It wasn't fair to Ryan Murray to put that burden on his shoulders.

Could it be the Oilers were going to send Yakupov up the river and let him fall to 3 or 4. They may have figured they had a deal with Howson, and he didn't come through for them. We can tell the Oilers were distancing themselves from Yakupov by Igor Larionovs indifferent attitude towards Edmonton and their Media affiliates in the hours leading up to the draft.

Nail Yakupov is an Edmonton Oiler today and the curb appeal is positive as far as fan interest goes. He's one of ours and we'll support him like he's one of our own, for as long as it lasts. Nail will get his NHL feet wet here for a couple yrs, but will he be here long enough for them to dry. Welcome to Edmonton Nail Yakupov.

Kids who are 3rd and 4th liners in the CHL don't generally translate into 3rd or 4th line NHL players.

This was honestly some of the dumbest drafting I've ever seen done by this team.

They went and looked back at all the mistakes they made in the past (Paukovich, Radunske, Caron, Abney, etc) and learned nothing from it.

Big players whose sole attribute is size and toughness are a waste of a draft pick. You can acquire these guys (NHL ready) for mid to late round picks all the time, why would you trade a 2nd one just for the right to try and develop one?

Who cares about organizational need when you aren't even filling the needs right now? The reason why you never draft for need is because your team needs at the time can be completely different from your team needs by the time these players are ready.

You'd figure with the horrible track record this team has with drafting for need they might learn something. No wonder this team has been a lottery team 3 years in a row and has the worst record since the lockout.

I don't mind the selections after all everything past the first round is mostly a crap shoot anyways. Given that the oil are going to be handing out some pretty hefty contracts in the near future to keep all of their incredible talent up front they are going to need a steady supply of readily accessible cheap players to plug into their third and fourth lines once we start competing for the cup. Might as well start stocking some big boys and hope a few pan out. Go oil!!

Funny thing is I got to go to my first OHL game this year when I was visiting my father in law in Ontario. We went to a 67's/Bulls game and it just so happened to be Zharkov's first game. He was obviously one of the more talented players on the ice and netted a pair in his first CHL game in the Bulls 6-5 OT come from behind win.

Have to say he was the one name that stood out for me on the game (even more so than Gaunce) on the Bellville side while Ceci was obviously great for the 67's.

Not a great sample size but from what I saw of him it is nice to see that type of skill added in a late round.

Two years maybe....he wants to play with Yakupov...I think this kid will work his ass off...as for the other picks (read Moroz), I'm stunned...he won't be Zack Kassian calibre, imho (and I'm humble, sorta)

Moroz and Zharkov are the two that I will probably end up following the closest (after Yakupov, of course) as I doubt the others will ever get beyond the AHL/ECHL level.

I wish that the Oil could have landed Thrower (defenceman) from the Blades because he's got some offense and a nasty streak-- a great future 2nd pairing defenceman-- good for Montreal for taking him in the second round.

It looks like the last two drafts were about low risk skill prospects and this one was about drafting some size and grittiness up front. I sure hope at least 2-3 prospects (over and above Yakupov) pan out...

We now have 4-5 young marqee talents , if you include Paajarvi . These talents need to be surrounded by some serious upgrades on rest of team . Using what we have in draftees and what else is in our system , we are not near being a contender as yet . Time for Tams and company to get serious about going outside our system and make serious offers (at least get in the mix ) for talents like Stall, Parise , Nash, Luongo , etc.. Make an offer on Crosby - you never know . We are slowly being killed by lack of action outside our failing roster and youth . Come on let's get moving before we start loosing these marquee players ! Other pertinent players are going very reasonable so far , but we do not even appear to be interested . Must be nice to have a squad like we do and not need to trade or get invovled in such dialogue, etc..? At least thats what our people seem to think , despite their awfull record and results .

Great job by Stu, lets face it, we got the best guy in the draft. If we would have took Ryan Murray it doesn't matter what would have happened on day 2. We took the surest thing and tried hitting homers on day 2.

With Schenn being traded I would think Shultz is going to Toronto. I really hope Tambellini does some trades or dips into free agency cause that defense needs upgrading and I'm pretty sure the oilers have enough prospects or roster players to dangle.

With Schenn being traded I would think Shultz is going to Toronto. I really hope Tambellini does some trades or dips into free agency cause that defense needs upgrading and I'm pretty sure the oilers have enough prospects or roster players to dangle.

Nope, odds are he will sell the Barker re-hiring by saying he was hurt and deserved another chance.

I prefer sticking with the best player available philosophy in the first two rounds. Especially when you're picking 32nd overall. Still, maybe they know something about Moroz that other teams and scouting services don't, given that he plays in their backyard.

I don't think they were chasing, after Samuelson and Matteau were off the board. They had all Friday night to re-think things afterward.

Being from the UK, i was interested in this aswell. But looking further into this, i saw the player in question (Cody Payne of the plymouth whalers) has his hometown/place of birth listed as Florida. So im guessing his parents are British but he's born, raised and trained in the States. Anyone who knows more and knows otherwise feel free to butt in but thats the impression i got!

Still waiting for the first true British trained NHL player... Tony Hand should have been an Oiler!

Barker was brutal, Potter pretty much stole his roster spot. How freaken hard is it to trade for a decent defense. 1 top 4 defenseman 1 backup goaltender and maybe some sandpaper how hard could that be ST.

And that would explain his numbers if he came back from the injury and struggled to score (ala Yakupov).

But Zharkov got hurt at the beginning of the year and came back and put up all his points, then fell off the map. I don't think his injury impacted his play in the 2nd half.

He is what he is... a guy who can shoot the puck but is lazy and doesn't do anything else on the ice. If you can get him to add more elements to his game, then he could be something.

Where he was picked isn't the issue (good risk/reward selection), but let's ease up on the comparables.

Breaking one’s collar bone is one of the more excruciating bones to break to say the least.
It’s even worse if your upper body is your profession.

2- 6 weeks in a sling that’s strapped so bloody tight to pull your shoulders back, 6-8 weeks is the normal recovery time (pain free not movement free) depending on location of the break as well as the bone displacement, still you’re only allowed to move your arm slightly with zero rotation.

Then you’re not really healed till about 4 months as the bone and scare tissue build back up, then after it’s healed you get the great time of tearing the scare tissue to suit your movement.

It’s especially an awesome time if you’re an athlete that use’s torsion twisting and of course your arms and chest.

Then of course the thought of breaking it again and the excruciating pain associated with breaking ones collar bone never ever leaves you or your head.

I’ll give the kid a pass on the season…lazy is the worst word you could have used.

I’ll give the kid a pass on the season…lazy is the worst word you could have used.

Agreed...like me, you have had a broken collarbone (clavicle)....I give this kid a pass as well; George Burnett had this to say about the kid:

(From the Bull's website) Bulls Head Coach and General Manager George Burnett describes the player he took 13th overall in the 2011 CHL Import Draft as having a much improved possession and cycling game. "Daniil continues to show that he's willing to work in order reach the next level. He's adapted nicely to the North American game and has shown a willingness to improve his game away from the puck. The only thing holding Daniil back," Burnett continued, "is his overall strength and that's something that he's putting a lot of work into this summer. As his overall strength improves, so does his skating. He's a guy you can count on for great skill and finish around the net."

Schultz is still owned by the Ducks - if the Leafs or any other organization talks to him, it's tampering and is considered to be a pretty big deal. I really doubt that BB would send Schenn away without knowing the availability of Schultz, if that's who he's counting on for a replacement.

TO has plenty of prospects on the blue line to replace Schenn. I think this trade was more about acquiring JVR than it was about getting rid of Schenn. I believe the odds that Schultz signs with TO have not increased with this trade.

Schultz is still owned by the Ducks - if the Leafs or any other organization talks to him, it's tampering and is considered to be a pretty big deal. I really doubt that BB would send Schenn away without knowing the availability of Schultz, if that's who he's counting on for a replacement.

TO has plenty of prospects on the blue line to replace Schenn. I think this trade was more about acquiring JVR than it was about getting rid of Schenn. I believe the odds that Schultz signs with TO have not increased with this trade.

I agree, it also make's little sense to draft Rielly if your counting Schultz in as well, there the same type of player.

Schultz is still owned by the Ducks - if the Leafs or any other organization talks to him, it's tampering and is considered to be a pretty big deal. I really doubt that BB would send Schenn away without knowing the availability of Schultz, if that's who he's counting on for a replacement.

TO has plenty of prospects on the blue line to replace Schenn. I think this trade was more about acquiring JVR than it was about getting rid of Schenn. I believe the odds that Schultz signs with TO have not increased with this trade.

agreed, but with a caveat.

The odds that Schultz signs or that some secret deal is in the works are no different...

but the trade may signal an increased motivation on the part of Toronto to pursue Schultz. That in itself could harm our chances.

although I note that in Bob McKenzie's recap of trade/fa talk yesterday the only team he mentioned in relation to Schultz was the Oilers. probably that means he was short on time... but it was an interesting sign that at least ST is working on something, or is expected to be.

I am happy with the Oilers draft. We got Yak (wished we could have picked up Galyenchuk in a trade, but still got the BPA).

As for the 2nd day, these players are all longshots and most were forwards. This bodes well for the future. Instead of picking up a bunch of D, which we have in surplus as prospects, this was a good strategy. I don't know how you can be critical, when all players picked after the top 10 are virtually longshots.

As for Schultz, we probably still have a better chance than TO, even though they subtracted Schenn, they still added Rielly. Rielly potentially could challenge for a roster spot, plus they are loaded on the backend. Schultz will see that he has more opportunity still in E-Town. I expect him to sign here.